Saturday, October 9, 2010

My mom had a nice little collection of favorite recipes that she would cook. Unfortunately, most of them were found in cookbooks and never written down on cards or saved. She would only refer back to the cookbook that the recipe was in. Now that she is gone, it has been difficult to find the favorites I grew up with. Swiss steak is one of those recipes. I have no idea where she got her recipe, and it is not written down. So this leaves me to try to find a way of making it myself. Maybe one day I will replicate what she made - tender steaks with a tomato gravy. But until then, this recipe is easy and delicious. Maybe someday I will perfect the gravy!

Dredge steaks in flour and brown on both sides in a skillet with about two tablespoons of canola oil. Set steaks aside. Saute onions, celery and carrot until softened, and when done, add garlic. Combine vegetables with can of tomatoes and paprika, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and allow to cook for a few minutes. Toss everything into a crock pot and cook 8 hours until steaks are fork tender. Serve with pasta or mashed potatoes. You can also make this on the stove top in a dutch oven instead of a slow cooker. Just add about a cup of water or broth and simmer everything low and slow for about two hours.

2 comments:

Swiss steak -- I so remember it from my youth in Pittsburgh. Thx Karen for the memory! Your recipe was definitely more "exotic" than our family's. The diced tomatoes and spices were Campbell's tomato soup in our house. Always mashed potatoes with that red gravy in the center. Usually canned waxed beans or canned green beans. Sacred food classic dinner for us usually on Wednesdays.

I wonder if my mother used Campbell's soup?! That might be the magic ingredient I am missing! Thanks David! It sound like your menu was very similar to my families. Tuesday was memorably "Spaghetti Night" followed by a weekly progression of baked chicken, hamburgers and something like swiss steak or the dreaded tuna noodle casserole. Yuck.